Can the victim drop the charges against me

Can the victim drop the charges against me?
Derek Byrd, Byrd Law Firm

A question that I get often is, “Can the victim drop the charges against me?” The criminal defendant, someone who’s been arrested for a crime, wants to know if a victim can actually drop the charges. Is it as simple as the victim just going down to the state attorney’s office and telling the prosecutor they don’t want to prosecute and signs a “Waiver of Prosecution”, and then magically the charges against the defendant just disappear? Unfortunately, the answer is no. The victim cannot drop the charges against you.

It’s not the victim versus the defendant. It’s the State of Florida versus the defendant. So, once the police are involved and have made an arrest, the train has really left the station regarding the victim dropping the charges as the case is then in the hands of the State Attorney’s Office, and the State Attorney’s Office will be the sole entity making the decision of whether or not charges will be filed and the case will go forward.

The reality is it does help someone’s case if the victim is not interested in pursuing the charges or the victim doesn’t want the defendant prosecuted. But again, it’s not up to the victim. It is up to the individual state attorney assigned to the case to decide whether a crime was committed or not. Technically speaking, the prosecutor’s office has an obligation to prosecute if they believe a crime was committed whether the victim wants the defendant prosecuted or not.

This comes up more often in domestic batteries – boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, brother, sister – they get into a fight and the defendant is arrested. Then the victim, whether it’s the wife or the girlfriend, or the brother or sister or whoever, they don’t want their loved one prosecuted. And they feel bad about having the person arrested to begin with. So, they want to run down to the prosecutor’s office and say, “Hey, look, I don’t want my loved one prosecuted.”

Their opinion does carry some weight with the prosecutor, but it doesn’t carry the day. If the prosecutor believes a crime was committed, they are likely to prosecute regardless of what the victim wants. By the same token, you also have victims that are very adamant about prosecution. That doesn’t work either. So, the prosecutor thinks that a crime was not committed but the victim goes down to the prosecutor’s office and says “I want this person prosecuted, I demand to have them hung from the highest tree in Sarasota.” This may carry a little weight with the prosecutor, but it does not carry the day. A prosecutor cannot ethically prosecute a case simply because the victim wants that to be done.

In the future, when you hear someone say “The victim’s going to drop charges”, technically speaking, it’s not an accurate legal statement because the victim cannot drop charges in a criminal case.

All information contained herein is provided for the purpose of providing basic information only and should not be construed as formal legal advice. The Sarasota Attorneys disclaim any and all liability resulting from reliance upon such information.  You are strongly encouraged to seek professional legal advice before relying upon any of the information contained herein. Legal advice should be sought directly from a properly retained lawyer or attorney.